A magical journey of a sharp-tongued woman and a goofy man

Chapter 116 The Enemy's Fierce Momentum

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye were still immersed in the joy of the artifact's successful evolution, as if they were floating on clouds.

Jiang Ye even started humming a little tune, a tune so fast that even the second uncle from the next village couldn't catch up.

But this relaxed atmosphere didn't last long. The surrounding air suddenly became heavy, like solidified jelly, making it hard to breathe.

"Xiao Li, do you feel... a little cold?" Jiang Ye rubbed his arms. Despite the bright sunshine, he felt a chill.

Ye Shuli also noticed something was wrong, and her relaxed expression instantly turned serious.

"It's not cold, it's..." Before she could finish speaking, a powerful and unfamiliar aura swept over her, pressing down on her like a mountain on her chest, making it hard to breathe.

A figure draped in a black robe slowly emerged from the shadows, his face obscured, surrounded by a chilling black mist.

The black-robed man's entrance was accompanied by his own background music (BGM), and his eerie entrance made him look like a major villainous boss.

"Hand over the divine artifact." The black-robed man's voice was low and hoarse, like a summons from hell, sending chills down one's spine.

"Huh? What did you say? I didn't hear you!" Jiang Ye deliberately raised his voice and even picked at his ear, as if to say, "Say it again."

In reality, he was extremely panicked. This man in black robes was clearly no pushover, and his powerful aura was making it hard for him to breathe.

The man in black robes clearly had no patience for wasting words with him, and directly raised his hand and waved a black energy wave towards Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye.

"Wow! You're serious!" Jiang Ye exclaimed, pulling Ye Shuli behind him and simultaneously channeling his spiritual power to form a defensive barrier in front of him.

"Boom!" The energy wave crashed into the barrier, producing a loud bang. Cracks instantly appeared in Jiang Ye's defensive barrier, and the powerful impact forced him back several steps.

"Is this all you've got? You think you can protect her?" The man in black robes said with disdain.

"Who the hell are you? You come here and start stealing things. Don't you have any sense of public decency?" Although Jiang Ye was forced back, he didn't back down verbally.

"You're courting death!" The man in black robes attacked again, this time with even greater ferocity. Black energy waves transformed into countless sharp blades, sweeping across the land.

"Xiao Li..." Jiang Ye's heart skipped a beat when he saw this scene.

Ye Shuli patted his shoulder, gesturing for him to step back. "Leave it to me." Ye Shuli's eyes sharpened, and she lightly raised her slender hand, palm facing upward. Brilliant golden light gathered in her hand, gradually forming a sphere of light.

The sphere of light grew larger and larger, emitting a dazzling light that illuminated everything around it as if it were daytime.

The artifact hummed in her hand, as if responding to her call.

The next second, the ball of light transformed into a huge light curtain, enveloping Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye.

The black-robed man's attack landed on the light barrier, like a mud ox entering the sea, stirring up ripples, but unable to shake the light barrier in the slightest.

"What...what is this?!" The onlookers exclaimed in surprise, for they had never seen such a powerful defensive force before.

Seeing this, the man in black robes also became serious. He increased his output of spiritual power, and the black spiritual power poured down like a storm. The ripples on the light screen became more and more intense, but it remained indestructible.

"That's it?" Jiang Ye, hiding behind the light barrier, peeked out and made a face at the man in black robes. "Your attack isn't even enough to tickle me!"

Enraged by Jiang Ye's provocation, the man in black snorted and quickly formed hand seals, sending streams of black spiritual energy like arrows towards Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye.

While dodging the attacks, Jiang Ye used his not-so-powerful spiritual energy to counterattack.

Although his attacks were not very powerful, they were exceptionally agile, like an eel, always finding a weakness in the man in black robes and harassing him from time to time.

The man in black robes initially didn't take Jiang Ye seriously, but as Jiang Ye's attacks became more frequent, he also began to feel somewhat annoyed.

Just as he was distracted, Jiang Ye suddenly changed his attack method, and a stream of spiritual energy transformed into a rope, which wrapped around the black-robed man's ankle.

"Ouch!" The man in black robes stumbled and almost fell to the ground, his disheveled appearance drawing laughter from those around him.

"I didn't expect this kid to be so capable!"

"It seems we all underestimated him!"

The onlookers' attitudes changed; the tense atmosphere was now filled with anticipation as they all wanted to know what would happen next.

The man in black robes was enraged and about to retaliate when a cold glint flashed in Ye Shuli's eyes...

"It's my turn."

Ye Shuli's lips curled into a cold smile, and the divine weapon in her hand shone brightly, as dazzling as a small sun.

"Let me show you the true power of this divine artifact!" she shouted softly. The artifact emitted a clear ringing sound, and a dazzling white light shot into the sky, piercing straight into the clouds.

The white light hovered in the air for a moment, then shot towards the man in black robes like an arrow.

The man in black robes' expression changed drastically. He hurriedly mobilized all his spiritual power to defend himself, and a thick barrier of black spiritual power formed in front of him.

However, the white light was unstoppable, easily piercing through the black-robed man's defenses and striking him hard in the chest.

"Pfft!" The man in black robes spat out a mouthful of blood, his body flying backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

He struggled to get up, but found himself powerless and his spiritual energy was in complete disarray.

"That's it? You're way too weak!" Jiang Ye gloated from the side. He ran up to the man in black robes, striking a victorious pose. "How about it? Do you admit defeat?"

The man in black robes glared fiercely at Jiang Ye. He never expected that he would be forced into such a predicament by a junior in the early stage of spiritual cultivation and a seemingly weak woman.

He looked up at the divine artifact in Ye Shuli's hand.

Jiang Ye held Ye Shuli's hand tightly, "Shuli, you're amazing!"

Ye Shuli grasped Jiang Ye's hand in return and gave him a firm look.

She knew that the battle was not over yet, and that they had even more powerful enemies to face.

Seeing that a direct attack was ineffective, the man in black robes suddenly let out a sinister laugh, a laugh that was eerie and like fingernails scratching a blackboard, sending chills down one's spine.

"Since force doesn't work, let's try a softer approach!" he said sinisterly, his hands rapidly forming hand seals. Black spiritual energy spread out like tentacles, frantically destroying the surrounding environment.

Towering ancient trees were uprooted, and the ground cracked open with deep ravines. Sand and stones flew everywhere, blocking out the sun. The once peaceful and serene valley was instantly transformed into a living hell.

"Holy crap! Is this thing going to demolish a house?" Jiang Ye looked around and couldn't help but exclaim, "Its destructive power is even worse than a demolition crew!"

Ye Shuli was also shocked by this sudden change; she hadn't expected the man in black robes to use such despicable means.

"He's trying to..." Ye Shuli suddenly realized the black-robed man's purpose, "He wants to create chaos and take the opportunity to escape!"

"Xiao Li, we have to stop him!" Jiang Ye also realized the seriousness of the problem. If the man in black robes escaped, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Ye Shuli nodded and was about to make a move when she suddenly sensed an unusual aura.

"Wait..." She turned to look to the side and saw that the evil alchemist who had been lying on the ground had somehow stood up. His face was pale, a strange smile was on his lips, and he held a black pill in his hand, which emitted a nauseating smell.

"Want to leave? Not so easy!" The evil alchemist's voice was hoarse and cold. He swallowed the pill in his hand, and a powerful black spiritual energy instantly erupted, enveloping his entire body.

"Oh no! He's going to..." Ye Shuli's expression changed, but before she could finish speaking, the evil alchemist's body suddenly swelled up like an inflated balloon, ready to explode at any moment.

"Holy crap! What kind of move is this?" Jiang Ye's eyes widened. The plot twist was too fast. He felt like his brain couldn't keep up.

"He's going to self-destruct!" Ye Shuli finally understood the evil alchemist's intention. He actually wanted to use self-destruction to hold them off and create an opportunity for the man in black robes to escape!

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye exchanged a glance, both seeing solemnity and worry in each other's eyes.

What should they do?

Is it to stop the evil alchemist from self-destructing, or to pursue the man in black robes?

"Xiao Li..." Jiang Ye held Ye Shuli's hand tightly.

Ye Shuli looked at Jiang Ye, took a deep breath, and made a decision. "Jiang Ye..."